From the Christian left - received the email today from

[Joe for Clark]

faithful america and am passing it on -

Waging War on Minimum Wage

Dear Joe:



As a tireless supporter of the minimum wage and " Let Justice Roll", you need to know that Congress has somehow managed to lash the minimum wage bill to an Iraq War supplemental spending package. That means the only way to get a higher minimum wage is to vote for more spending for the Iraq war at the same time.

NOW you know why Congress needs you! In the clamour of special interests and power brokering, the most important voice of all - the still, small voice - is not being heard. That is why your rational, moral, compassionate, courageous, and faithful voice seems sorely needed right now!

NCC General Secretary Bob Edgar sums it up best:

"It is reprehensible for Congress to attach the federal minimum wage to a funding request for what most religious leaders in America have called an immoral war. It is also immoral to ask the working poor and other taxpayers to pay for the wage increase by offering tax breaks to business. Offering tax breaks for business and wealthy citizens at the expense of working people across the country has been a hallmark of the current administration. Religious leaders have consistently called the federal budget a moral document and decried its continued preferential option for the rich while the Bible clearly has—as Pope Paul VI stated—'a preferential option for the poor.'" (read complete statement here.)

If you agree, please take action today (below) before Congress does something we will all soon regret. Then be sure to forward this note to as many friends and colleagues as possible. The minimum wage is too important to too many to be used as currency - especially for war!

With grateful hearts for YOUR voice of faith,

Vince Isner
FaithfulAmerica.org

[Parche]

1. Left

There is a Krishtun left????

[wryter2000]

2. Of course, there is

There's also the Interfaith Alliance and probably more organizations I don't know about, not being a Christian myself.

[grannylib]

3. *lol* there is indeed, with many loud and proud members, most of whom are

routinely ignored by the MSM. Personally, as a leftist-progressive Christian, I was raised to believe that faith wasn't something about which one spouted off and put on airs; it was something you lived. It was how you chose to spend money; how you chose to give back to the community; how you chose to vote; how you chose to stand with the poor and disenfranchised; it was how you spent some free time volunteering; it was how you cared for the environment. I am really sick of my faith having been coopted by a bunch of shallow, hollow mouthpieces for the reich wing of this country.

[Joe for Clark]

5. Boy do you have this right.

I am so mad about what they did to us - so mad.

And there are a lot us that are pretty mad about it.

Interfaith alliance is pretty good too - as pointed out here.

I kinda like faithful america - just a matter of choice though.

Anyway - we are grouping together -- for a fact!!!

Joe

[grannylib]

6. Are you familiar with Sojourners at all? Jim Wallis' organization?

Pretty solid group, heads and hearts and both functional...

[Joe for Clark]

8. A little.

They have a magazine - I have read it off and on.

There is no doubt at all that the catholic church has come down strongly against the war -

If they didn't I really wouldn't count myself catholic anymore.

This is not just catholics agreeing - every major christian branch, jews, every religion really agrees on this. We have been pretty quiet up to now -now we are going to speak - very loudly.

I surely do wish you the best granylib -

Joe

[Amy6627]

9. Amen Sister!

[Joe for Clark]

4. Yep -

It is not really right to say just christian - most religons are grouping together there now, but most are christian of one form or another.

I respect that group - not that they crossed any lines just yet - but they clearly put principle about tax exempt status.

Appear to be the real deal - to me. And they are getting into this in a good way.

They are not the only group doing it - just the one I listen to the most.

Joe

[Leopolds Ghost]

7. Where were these people when welfare, public housing and homeless shelters were/are being gutted?

By the Clinton administration, no less?

Jesus told us to minister to the poor. He told us to give away our belongings if we were rich, not because other people deserve them more, but because the poor are blessed. He also told us to care for society's outcasts, not to engage in public displays of pity and "charity" for whom we feel nothing but contempt. So where is the Christian left efforts to replace our broken and eviscerated welfare system? Where are the anti-gentrification advocates on the Christian left, since housing costs are the #1 thing that makes poor Americans any different from you or I (who can plow our income into a mortgage, never seeing a dime of it anyway?)

[Amy6627]

10. Same place they always were, ignored because they are not lock

step insync with the fundies that support the Repukes!

[Joe for Clark]

11. We were always there.

What did Jesus really teach - what was the dominant teaching - cause I can tell you--

"What so ever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me."

That is what this is about -- was always about to many of us.

Maybe there are bad things that could be said about Clinton - maybe - but he never pushed war, he really didn't.

Maybe Clinton could have done more - guess that is always true - but he did pretty well on the whole.

What do we have now??


Joe

[grannylib]

12. There have always been those who have lobbied for a Christian perspective

on policy in housing, living wages, war, working conditions, liveable and affordable housing, etc. But unfortunately, money talks, and the church and other faith-based organizations don't exactly have a lot of clout by themselves until they organize like the well-oiled Republican machine that coopted Christianity and claimed it as its exclusive territory, all for money and power.

The media largely ignores those on the left who do speak out from a faith perspective; when anyone with an outlook other than hate gays and ban abortion gets an opportunity to speak, more often than not the media belittles them for "trying to jump on the values bandwagon" or "pandering to the Christian values voter" or "moving to the right to attract the family values voter in mainstream America" or some such shit. Rarely are those on the left given the respect for their religious convictions in the same way as are those on the right.

[Joe for Clark]

13. We agree so much -

I have thought this thru - and I think - some very unscrupulous people decided we would never speak with one voice - they used this presumption - against us.

They made it appear that there really was some "christian right" majority - that they could use this as some sort of political ammunition.

Couldn't be more wrong - in intent as well as action.

I see we equally understood the sermon on the mount - and I am glad we are both here now.

They have done their best - and we have come thru just fine.

Now they have to deal with us.

And they can't.

God is with you - as clearly can be seen,

Joe

[bobbolink]

14. If you want to be confrontive without knowing the facts, then answer this:

WHERE THE HELL ARE THE "LIBERALS" WITH POVERTY ISSUES???

Why are all the pleadings for calls and letters on the budget mostly ignored right here on DU????

Why is any information about homelessness met with mostly sarcastic comments about the RW, rather than actual organizing to change the problem?

Christians are doing much more than "liberals" about poverty, so if you want to place blame, you can look right here!

There has been PLENTY of refutation right here on DU regarding the difference in various "brands" of Christians. If you choose to ignore the reality, and keep condeming all your Dem brothers and sisters, then you're going to have to expect to finally get blasted for it. This kind of broad brush hate shit is no more attractive and peaceful from the left than it is from the right.

Time for you to do some thinking.